The Upper Canadien

Most of the Canadiens are back in Montreal, with Andrei Markov now having arrived from Russia. One absent face at training camp Sunday may be PK Subban, if his agent Don Meehan and GM Marc Bergevin are unable to come to an agreement on a new contract. Various rumours have Subban asking for "Doughty" money, as in $6-7 million per year on a longterm deal. I don't buy it, and I suspect Subban will settle for a one or two year deal, in the $4.5-$5.5 million range.

Things are still quiet otherwise, although one piece of news to keep an eye on is the health of Tomas Plekanec. There had been reports, that were denied, of an injury while playing in Europe. Plekanec was being checked out by doctors today, and it appears he has a rib injury. We'll learn more once camp gets underway.

Until then, once the CBA is passed by the players transactions can begin. What should we expect from the Habs? I'd look for a defenceman to get moved, as they have quite the collection of depth defencemen available, and far too many to carry on the roster.

The Canadiens will be working hard over the shortened camp, as they look to learn *new coach Michel Therrien's system, which will no doubt differ greatly from that of Randy Cunneyworth and Jacques Martin before him. It should be an exciting few days as we get set for January 19th. I'll have more over the week as the team takes shape, with an eye on whether Alex Galchenyuk makes the cut.

About The Upper Canadien

The Upper Canadien is your one stop shop for all things Montreal Canadiens. Since the summer of 2010, I've been providing Habs related news, notes, and most importantly, opinions. As a blogger, I don't believe it's my job to report the news, it's my privilege to comment on it. You may disagree with what I suggest. In fact, you most likely will. But that's the great part about blogging: it spurs opinion, comment and engages all involved. I've really enjoyed all the debate and commentary from readers thus far and I encourage everyone to respond with ideas on lineups, trades, logos, sweaters, mascots, whatever. The Upper Canadien is a conversation for all hockey fanatics.

I've come to Kukla's Korner with four years of campus radio and three years of sportswriting from my time at Mount Allison University on Canada's East coast. Not only do I not have any professional journalistic training, after five years in the corporate world, I've spent much of the past two years completing an MBA. Business by day, hockey by night, I'm a Canadiens fan through and through. I hope you enjoy reading as much as I do writing.